The Legend of Randidly Ghosthound

Instantly a smartly dressed man appeared in front of him. He smiled serenely at Randidly.

“Hello, I am your guide, Nul. Congratulations, you now have the qualifications to found a Newbie village. To do so, you simply need to receive your class. As the first person to receive a class from me, you will receive the Soul Skill Village Chieftain, which will help you survive in this world. Are you ready to proceed?”

Randidly’s eyes were practically sparkling as he nodded. With a class, he could finally level. And then…

Another notification popped up.

You are about to be taken to the class screen. Once you enter the class screen, you cannot leave without picking a class. You will have the option of choosing from three classes. The first will be a general class based on the system’s initial impression of your skills and personality when the system first initialized. The second will be a random class. The third will be a class generated based on your current natural gifts and disposition. Do you wish to proceed? Y/N

Randidly frowned, turning to Nul. “When it says current gifts......what does that mean?”

Nul gave him an innocent smile. “Different individuals are naturally blessed. At the time of the class selection, the system will examine you, and recommend a class based on that.”

“Do your natural blessings include skill levels? Current stat levels?”

Nul only continued to smile, ignoring the question. Randidly sighed and selected no. So it was that sort of system.

If Randidly did select a class, it likely wouldn’t be the first choice, because that class would be based on the him from several months ago. Or at least that’s how it would seem to him. A 23 year old who hadn’t ever had to struggle in his life. Similarly, the 2nd, random option, seemed unreliable, and not a real choice at all.

So the third option would be what he was betting on, a current scan of his “Natural Blessings”. Anyone else, fighting for their lives, wouldn’t think anything of that phrasing, but Randidly had noticed it immediately. If it scanned them now, perhaps scant days after the scan for the first choice, what was it scanning for…? Natural blessings…?

No, that would have been caught on the system initialization recommendation. If by natural blessings, they meant stats and skills bestowed by the system… In addition, it would likely take most people more time than Randidly to strengthen themselves and work up the nerve to found a Newbie Village. In this time, they would be relying solely on paths to grow stronger...

And also hanging over Randidly’s head was Shal’s statement that you can only learn a set number of skills once you have a class.

Although likely less detailed, it seemed the old man’s thoughts were on a similar track. “...So it’s a game of chicken, huh. Are you gonna gamble on learning new skills so you get a better class, or are you going to take the class to grow strong…”

Nul turned from Randidly to the old man. “Since he has rejected this opportunity, I know offer it to you. Remember, gaining the first class from me would mean that you also gain the Soul Skill Village Chieftain-”

The old man just snorted and spat. “Not interested.”

“Hey, who is that?” Chubbs asked, wandering over with a bickering Tera and Donny in tow.

Nul instantly beamed at the new arrivals. “Which of you would like to be Village Chiefta-”

For the second time, his pitch was interrupted, but this time by Donny’s yell. “MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.”

Donny immediately rushed forward to a bowing Nul.

“Do you choose to select a class no-”

“I do!” Donny said, practically salivating. Randidly and the old man exchanged glances.

“Do you know anything about what a class gets you?” The old man asked in a quiet voice. Randidly shook his head slightly. They both looked at Donny.

Since Randidly was already letting him be the one who dealt with people, he saw no reason to stop him from being the Village Chieftain. Although Nul was talking it up, the slimy way they almost explicitly refused to indicate methods to get better classes made Randidly rather skeptical.

And if it did turn out to be a good thing, it’s not like it would be that hard to kill another rare mob, once he found one.

Nul gestured, and suddenly they all could see a giant, floating screen. On it were three choices.

“The first choice is-” Nul began to explain, but Donny just waved his hand, ignoring him.

“No need,” He said imperiously, “I choose the second option. I am…. Dusk Knight! No, wait, Knight of the Dusk!”

Randidly had a hard time suppressing his smile based on the first and third options. But he supposed it was a good thing the random class ended up being so… official and gamey sounding, like the rest of the world. Hopefully the level up gains would give them an idea of what a class could provide.

Instantly, motes of gold flew from Nul’s hand to Donny, and as the group watched, a short sword and shield appeared in Donny’s hands. Grinning from ear to ear, Donny began to swing them around, but promptly underestimated the weight and fell on his face.

“What did the class give you?” Tera asked, jealousy clear in her voice.

Even sitting on his butt, his face covered in dirt, still Donny was glowing, and he waggled his fingers at Nul. “Show them the same notification you showed me, so they can stand and be awed in my brilliance.”

Shrugging, Nul complied. Randidly looked closely at the notification that appeared.

Congratulations! You have received the class of Knight. You have gained the Skill Ride Lvl 1. You have received the skill Honorable Charge Lvl 1. You have received the skill Stalwart Defense Lvl 1. You may learn 7 additional skills to these and those you already possess. Skills may be forgotten to learn new skills. +12 Health per Level, +1 Mana Per Level, +7 Stamina per level. +2 Vit, End, or Str per level (these points may be distributed between 2), +1 Resist per level.

The old man blinked, then shook his head, looking at Randidly. “Those numbers just make my eyes water. How good is that? It seems like a hell of a lot.”

Randidly nodded slowly. “Once he completes the Newbie path and gets that bonus, that’s 16 health, 3 mana, and 9 stamina, plus… 4 stat points per level? 2 Among Vit, End, and Str, 1 to Resist, one freely distributed. Hard to gauge how much the stats mean, but… all that extra health and stamina will add up. Do a lot to keep him alive…. After 15 levels, he will have comparable health and stamina to me, and that’s not even counting the bonuses he would get putting it into Vit and End…”

Frowning, the old man nodded. “So it really is hard to tell how useful it is. Well, I’ll try the skill level route for a while, and then revisit the issue.”

“You must hurry,” Nul said with a smile, looking at Randidly and the old man. “Remember, the Newbie Zone protection will wear off on this area in 7 days, and stronger monsters will come. You should select your class immediately.”

When he saw that neither of them really cared, Nul turned back to Donny, smile attached. “So where would you like your village to be?”